Babies Having Babies
by Sara Jaye
Summary: In the new and improved future, the kids settle down to get started on the third generation. A series of one-shots centered around various second gen pairings.
1. The World Changes Again

Hours after Aunt Lissa has given her the news, it's finally fully set in. And yet it still seems unreal, like she's dreaming. As if she's outside herself, watching, knowing this is happening but not to _her_.

Lucina's hand drifts down to her stomach, knowing it's still too early to feel anything but just _knowing_ it's there makes her heart pound with joy and fear. A child. Another life, growing inside her, something she's responsible for and she's still not sure she's completely ready. But this is it, Aunt Lissa is never wrong, and now it's up to her to break the news gently to her husband.

_I can do this, right? It's not as though I'm dying, I'm just having a baby._

She finds Inigo in the fields, practicing his dance steps. He's gotten quite good, almost enough to rival his own mother; when he hears her approach, he only smiles. Thankfully he's gotten past the embarrassment of other people...well, at least his own wife knowing about his hobby.

He's so carefree, still rather childlike in his own way even though they've grown so much since saving the future from Grima. _Are we even ready for this?_ There's no escaping it, but for a moment she considers putting off telling him until it starts to show.

_No,_ she chides herself. That would just be cruel, and all it would prove is a lack of trust in him. After all, it's his child too._ Their_ child, something they created together. _You can do this_, she tells herself, and clears her throat.

"Inigo?"

"Ah, Lucina." He spots her and bounds over, greeting her with a kiss. "How are you feeling? What did your aunt say?"

"Oh..." She swallows. "It's nothing serious, she just said to get plenty of rest and to eat well."

"That's all?"

"Well..." She pauses, staying her hand from touching her belly again._ I can do this_. "There is something else."

"Yes?" He draws her closer and she's more aware than ever of her heart pounding in her ears. _I can do this._

"That is, I..." She imagines him going into a panic, crying that they're not ready for children and running off to hide. She imagines him being scared and unable to support her and their child. "Inigo, I-"

"Lucina." He takes her hands. "What is it? Please...if it really is something worse than exhaustion, you need to tell me so we can get you the proper care. I...I don't want you to be seriously ill." Now she feels guilty for her earlier dark thoughts._ Just tell him._

"It's nothing like that," she reassures him. "But...it is something major." She swallows again, and finally the words come. "We're having a baby."

"A-a baby." He looks at her like he thinks she's kidding. "You and me, we're...you're..."

"Yes."

He's stock still and silent and again she expects the worst, until he releases her hand to rest his on her belly. He looks up at her questioningly, she nods, and a huge smile breaks out across his face.

"A baby." He laughs. "You're-that's my child in there! We're-" He gives a loud whoop and sweeps her into an embrace, planting such a huge kiss on her lips, practically crying with joy. "We're having a baby! You're having my baby! This is the best news I could've asked for!" His enthusiasm makes her dizzy, but she feels some of her worries melting away.

"I'll take that to mean you're happy about this," she laughs. "Ah, well...that's that, then, I suppose."

"Tomorrow we'll tell everyone we can." He pulls her closer. "I can't believe this...hey, do you think it'll be a boy or a girl? What should we name it?" Lucina laughs again, kissing his cheek.

"I'm not sure, really. I wouldn't be surprised if it was a boy, given my father's track record. But it's still a bit early to think about names! At least let's wait until I'm too big to stand up on my own."

"Oh, all right." He scoops her up into his arms and carries her back to their cabin. "And you'll do whatever your aunt says, right? Plenty of rest, and I'll make sure there's more than enough good food for you! Heh, it's a good thing I took up the bow, that means I can hunt and there'll always be plenty of food on the table? Oh, and-"

He babbles on, and she just leans her head against his shoulder with a smile. This isn't going to be easy, far from it, but at least she knows she can count on him. Just like always.


	2. Strength and Hope

The decision to have children wasn't to be made lightly, and that went double for them. Not because either of them doubted their ability to be parents; Brady at least had grown up with good examples and Noire, if nothing else, knew what _not_ to do. And with the future safe and secure now that Grima had been taken down once and for all, there was no concern about bringing a child into a poor environment.

The problem was Noire.

During their ordeal, she'd been weak in every sense of the word. Anemic, unstable, always needing someone to take care of her. Brady would have liked to say all that had changed, but while her mind and heart were stronger these days her body was just as frail. If it had been up to him he wouldn't have put her through this at all but she'd insisted, wanted to be a mother so badly she'd go through hell itself just to have a kid.

So they'd done it. It took them several tries but when Dad told them Noire was indeed pregnant, they'd been overjoyed before the agony had set in. All she did for the first three months was sleep and throw up to the point where it was a miracle she didn't waste away or lose the baby to malnutrition. Even when she finally managed to keep her food down she was still tired; five months in the sickness finally stopped but her belly was growing and her back was hurting and she could barely sleep.

Now, at eight months along, she couldn't even get out of bed anymore. Her anemia was as bad as ever and her back hurt so much that even sitting up was a chore.

Brady hated it. He hated knowing she was suffering this much and he couldn't do anything about it, there was only so much a staff could do and he wasn't as well-versed in this kind of thing as Ma was. But he wasn't about to _say_ it, not when he knew how badly Noire wanted this kid and in spite of everything how badly _he_ wanted it too.

So every day he would rub her back and her ankles, bring her tea and broth and the foods Ma had said every pregnant lady should eat.

"I'm sorry," she mumbled. "Sorry I'm still so weak."

"Hey, no need to apologize," he said, moving one hand to rest on her big belly. _Too_ big, he thought, the kid had to weigh at least ten pounds and she was still so small. "At least one of us got stronger, right? I'll always be here to take care of you and the little one."

She set down her half-eaten piece of bread and frowned. She wasn't buying it, he realized with a certain dread. She knew him too well.

"You're worried. I mean..._really_ worried, not just the way Inigo was with Lucina or Laurent with Severa. Y-you're..._scared_. Because I'm so weak." She shivered. "I-I'm sorry, I just wanted to have a baby so badly, I..." She trailed off, and he knew she was fighting back tears. Suddenly he felt like an idiot for freaking out so badly, for scaring her. But he wasn't as brave as Inigo, he couldn't force smiles so easily. He wasn't like Laurent, looking at his wife's pregnancy from an intellectual standpoint. He wasn't Dad with his gentle outlook and serenity.

_But damn it, I've gotta try! I didn't work my ass off just to freak out over a thing like this. If I can help face down Grima I can take care of a pregnant wife!_

"Of course I am. Why wouldn't I be worried about the girl I love when she's carryin' my child?" He moved to brush a lock of hair behind her ear. "But...you're stronger than you let on!" It was sort of true, what she lacked in body strength she made up for in determination. He wrapped his arms around her, burying his face in her shoulder. "You're gonna be okay, and so's the kid," he whispered, giving her belly a gentle pat. Her hand closed over his, lacing their fingers together.

"Thank you." She sighed, leaning back against him; her body felt warm and soft and full of life despite her pale skin and the dark circles under her eyes and her overall weariness. "Thank you for looking after me, for...for being you..." Suddenly, she winced, pressing their hands more tightly to her stomach. "Oh!" He nearly panicked until he felt the movement under his hand.

"No wonder you aint sleeping," he laughed. "How's your back?"

"It still hurts," she said. "But Mother said it's something all mothers have to deal with. She went through the same thing with me, and she's much stronger."

"Strong or not, you shouldn't have to hurt." He reluctantly let go of her so she could lay back down. After she'd made herself comfortable he rubbed small circles on her lower back, pressing a kiss to her shoulder every now and then. As she began to doze off, he thought about what Dad had said. _Getting your hopes up too high can lead to disaster, but in cases like this it's best to keep them high. Because hope is exactly what Noire has and always will need._

So he hoped. Hoped Noire's new stronger will would win out over her body's weakness, for his own strength to carry them all and that their baby would come out stronger than either he or his wife had been when they were young.


	3. Heroic Mother

"It's a good thing the palace is so big," Cynthia said as she watched the servants haul in yet another set of luggage. On their own, she and her parents and her husband weren't that many people. But then Lucina and Inigo arrived two weeks ago with the twins (and Inigo's own parents), and now Morgan's parents had just arrived. Compared to the size of their army back in the old days this wasn't a lot of people, but it was still enough to make a difference.

Plus, having a new baby was like having a dozen guests all at once with how busy they'd been. Not that Cynthia minded. A heroic mother rose to every cry and demand of her child, after all!

"I'm so glad everyone's here," Morgan added. "Should we go say hello right away, or do you still need a few moments to rest?" Rest, Cynthia thought with a slight grumble, ever since she'd had the baby all anyone ever told her to do was rest whenever she wasn't taking care of him. She placed Christopher back in his cradle, relieved that he'd finally gone to sleep. She didn't mind being a heroic mother instead of an ordinary hero, but she missed little things like being able to move around for more than an hour without someone fretting over her.

"I'm perfectly fine," she said. "Christopher's sleeping, I've had plenty of rest in the last few weeks and I have more than enough energy to sit and talk to your parents and my big sister!"

"But you've barely gotten any sleep in the last few weeks," Morgan reminded her. "I've offered to go to him when he cries or needs anything, and you know we've got plenty of nurses but you insist on doing everything."

"That's not true." Cynthia cocked an eyebrow. "I let the nurses take care of him while I'm sleeping, and you've gotten to hold him a lot!"

"Still, that's not nearly as much as you've been doing." Morgan smiled, looking down at the sleeping baby. "I think this is the first time in a few weeks _he's_ slept, too. Looks like we already know who he takes after the most."

"Awww, but he has your eyes and nose." Cynthia giggled. "And probably your hair, too."

"I meant in personality," Morgan said. "He's got more energy than you ever did."

"Hey, you're not exactly Mr. Snoozy-pants either," Cynthia snorted, playfully kissing the tip of his nose. "He got a double whammy from us both." She stroked the soft layer of light brown hair atop the boy's head. "He's going to _look_ like you, though."

"Nah, he's got Ylissean blood in his veins. He'll end up being a miniature Chrom," Morgan said. "Lucina's daughter already looks like a smaller you."

"And their son looks like Inigo's father." Cynthia snorted. "Poor mother, I hope one of her grandchildren eventually looks like her." Morgan raised an eyebrow.

"You're not thinking of having another one already, are you?"

"Why not? It's the heroic thing to do, isn't it? More heirs to carry on the line, playmates for Christopher, a big family of love?" She smiled, leaning against his shoulder. "Not right away, of course...maybe when Christopher's a year old."

"Well..." Morgan laughed toying with one of her pigtails. She still wore her hair in pigtails even as a wife and mother, not caring if she looked childish or ridiculous. "I guess. I mean, if we're gonna wait. Just promise not to nearly break my hand this time, okay?" Cynthia blushed.

"Sorry about that, by the way." She smoothed her dress down. "Enough chitchat, though! Our families are waiting!" She waited for Morgan to fix his own clothes before taking his hand and heading into the parlor. Next time, she promised herself, she would arrange it so Christopher could actually spend time with his older cousins.


End file.
